Slider for slide fastener

ABSTRACT

A slider for a slide fastener is constituted by three members including a body, a pull tab and a cover for pull tab attachment, a concave fitting groove capable of accommodating the lower end face of the cover is provided on the upper surface of the body, a welding projection to be protruded outward is provided in a part of the surface of the lower end face of the cover or a part of the bottom face of the fitting groove, and the welding projection is welded integrally by ultrasonic processing in a state in which the body formed of a resin and the cover are caused to come in contact with each other by pressure such that a fused resin does not overflow from the fitting groove to an external surface, resulting in the fabrication of a slider which can prevent a fused and solidified lump from being formed and can make a good appearance.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention

[0002] The present invention relates to a slider in a slider fastener,and more particularly to a bonding mechanism of a body and a cover forattaching a pull tab which can be used in a slider having an automaticor semiautomatic stopper in which an attachment column is provided onthe upper surface of a slider body as well as a free slider.

[0003] 2. Description of the Related Art

[0004] A slider for a slide fastener which has conventionally been knownincludes a slider having an automatic stopper in which an attachmentcolumn provided on the upper surface of a slider body is covered with acover for pull tab attachment and a free slider in which a cover forattaching a pull tab is directly fixed to the upper surface of a body.As shown in FIG. 14, the slider 101 has been disclosed in JP-A-51-12243in which a fitting groove 111 capable of fitting the lower end portions121 of both side walls 119 of a cover 104 is provided on the uppersurface of a slider body 102. The lower end portions 121 of both sidewalls 119 of the cover 104 are fitted in the fitting groove 111 and thelower end portions 121 of the cover 104, and the body 102 are thenwelded integrally in the fitting groove 111 by ultrasonic processing.The slider 101 also includes an attachment column 110 and a pivot 122.

[0005] In the slider 101 for a slide fastener shown in FIG. 14 which hasbeen described above, the lower end portions 121 of both side walls 119of the cover 104 for pull tab attachment are fitted in the fittinggrooves 111 provided on the upper surface of the body 102 in parallel,and the lower end portions 121 of the cover 104 and the body 102 arewelded integrally in the fitting grooves 111 by the ultrasonicprocessing. Accordingly, the surface of the lower end portion 121 of thecover 104 and the whole bottom face of the fitting grooves 111 arewelded in a contact state. Therefore, the surface of the lower endportion 121 of the cover 104 and the whole bottom face of the fittinggroove 111 are fused. For this reason, the amount of fusion of the cover104 and the body 102 is large to generate a situation in which a fusedmaterial overflows from the fitting groove 111 to the surface of thebody 102.

[0006] The fused material overflowing from the fitting groove 111 isstuck to all of the upper, front and rear surfaces of the body 102 andthe side, front and rear surfaces of the cover 104 and is thussolidified so that the beauty of the slider 101 is spoiled. Moreover, alump of the fused material stuck to the upper surface of the body 102and the side surface of the cover 104 comes in contact with a pull tab103 when the pull tab 103 is to fall down toward the upper surface ofthe body 102. Therefore, it is hard to cause the pull tab 103 tocompletely fall down toward the upper surface of the body 102.Accordingly, it is necessary to carry out a work for removing the lumpof the fused material which is stuck. Thus, there is a problem in thatthe production efficiency of the slider 101 is deteriorated.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0007] The invention has been made in consideration of theabove-mentioned problem. As a main object, a first aspect of theinvention is directed to a slider which is provided with a weldingprojection protruded from a part in a groove formed on the lower end ofa cover for pull tab attachment or the surface of a body, has such aconfiguration that a fused material can be prevented from being fusedexcessively and overflowing to the surface of the body to stick a lampeven if the body and the cover are welded by ultrasonic processing, anddoes not spoil the beauty of the slider but makes a good appearance, andfurthermore, a slider for a slide fastener which firmly fixes a coverfor pull tab attachment.

[0008] In addition to the object of the first aspect of the invention, asecond aspect of the invention is directed to the slider for a slidefastener, wherein the welding projection is provided at a predeterminedinterval in the groove formed on the lower end of the cover for pull tabattachment or the surface of the body, and the fused material can bespread toward a spacing between the projections in the groove and can beprevented from flowing out of the groove.

[0009] In addition to the object of the first aspect of the invention, athird aspect of the invention is directed to the slider for a slidefastener, wherein the welding projection to be provided in the grooveformed on the lower end of the cover for pull tab attachment or thesurface of the body takes such a shape as to generate a gap on left andright during fitting, and the fused material can be spread toward aspacing between the projections in the groove and can be prevented fromflowing out of the groove.

[0010] In addition to the object of the first, second or third aspect ofthe invention, a fourth aspect of the invention is directed to theslider for a slide fastener, wherein it is possible to carry outefficient welding, and furthermore, to maintain a great strength byspecifying a place in which the welding projection is to be provided inthe groove formed on the lower end of the cover for pull tab attachmentor the surface of the body.

[0011] In addition to the object of the first, second or third aspect ofthe invention, a fifth aspect of the invention is directed to the sliderfor a slide fastener, wherein the welding projection to be provided inthe groove formed on the lower end of the cover for pull tab attachmentor the surface of the body takes a square cross section to increase anamount of fusion, and the projection suitable for a large-sized sliderrequiring a great fusion strength is thus formed.

[0012] In addition to the object of the first, second or third aspect ofthe invention, a sixth aspect of the invention is directed to the sliderfor a slide fastener, wherein the welding projection to be provided inthe groove formed on the lower end of the cover for pull tab attachmentor the surface of the body takes a triangular cross section to reduce anamount of fusion, and the projection suitable for a small-sized sliderwhich does not require a great fusion strength is thus formed.

[0013] In order to attain the objects, the first aspect of the inventionis mainly directed to a slider for a slide fastener having a body 2 of aslider 1 and a cover 4 for pull tab attachment which is provided on anupper surface of the body 2, wherein a concave fitting groove 11 foraccommodating a lower end face 21 of the cover 4 is provided on theupper surface of the body 2, a welding projection 25 is protrudedoutward in a part of a surface of the lower end face 21 of the cover 4or a bottom face of the fitting groove 11 of the body 2, and the body 2of the slider 1 formed of a resin and the cover 4 for pull tabattachment are welded integrally by ultrasonic processing or the like.

[0014] In addition to the structure according to the first aspect of theinvention, the second aspect of the invention is directed to the sliderfor a slide fastener, wherein a plurality of welding projections 25 tobe provided in a part of the surface of the lower end face 21 of thecover 4 or the bottom face of the fitting groove 11 of the body 2 isformed to be protruded at a predetermined interval therebetween.

[0015] In addition to the structure according to the first aspect of theinvention, the third aspect of the invention is directed to the sliderfor a slide fastener, wherein the welding projection 25 to be providedin a part of the surface of the lower end face 21 of the cover 4 or thebottom face of the fitting groove 11 of the body 2 is formed to generatea constant gap portion on left and right sides of a continuousprojection 31.

[0016] In addition to the structure according to the first, second orthird aspect of the invention, the fourth aspect of the invention isdirected to the slider for a slide fastener, wherein the weldingprojection 25 to be provided in a part of the surface of the lower endface 21 of the cover 4 or the bottom face of the fitting groove 11 ofthe body 2 is formed on the lower end face 21 of a side wall 19 on bothsides of the cover 4 or the bottom face of the fitting groove 11 of thebody 2 which is opposed to the lower end face 21 of the side wall 19 ofthe cover 4.

[0017] In addition to the structure according to the first, second orthird aspect of the invention, the fifth aspect of the invention isdirected to the slider for a slide fastener, wherein the weldingprojection 25 to be provided on the surface of the lower end face 21 ofthe cover 4 or the bottom face of the fitting groove 11 of the body 2 isformed such that the shape of a protruded portion such as a rectangularparallelepiped 27 or a truncated cone 30 with a predetermined interval,or a continuous projection 31 takes a square cross section.

[0018] In addition to the structure according to the first, second orthird aspect of the invention, the sixth aspect of the invention isdirected to the slider for a slide fastener, wherein the weldingprojection 25 to be provided on the surface of the lower end face 21 ofthe cover 4 or the bottom face of the fitting groove 11 of the body 2 isformed such that the shape of a protruded portion such as a pyramid 26,a hipped member 28 or a cone 29 with a predetermined interval, or acontinuous projection 31 takes a triangular cross section.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0019]FIG. 1 is a side view showing a slider for a slide fastener.

[0020]FIG. 2 is a front view showing the slider.

[0021]FIG. 3 is a plan view showing the body of the slider.

[0022]FIG. 4 is an enlarged side view showing the cover of the slider.

[0023]FIG. 5 is an enlarged bottom view showing the cover of the slider.

[0024]FIG. 6 is an exploded front view showing a state of the slider inwhich welding has not been carried out.

[0025]FIG. 7 is a partial enlarged view showing a state in which thebody abuts on the cover before the welding of the slider.

[0026] FIGS. 8(a), 8(b) and 8(c) are explanatory views showing thewelding protrusion of a pyramid.

[0027] FIGS. 9(a), 9(b) and 9(c) are explanatory views showing thewelding protrusion of a hipped member.

[0028] FIGS. 10(a), 10(b) and 10(c) are explanatory views showing thewelding projection of a cone.

[0029] FIGS. 11(a), 11(b) and 11(c) are explanatory views showing thewelding projection of a truncated cone.

[0030]FIG. 12 is an explanatory view showing the welding projection of aprotruded portion.

[0031]FIG. 13 is a plan view showing a body provided with the weldingprojection.

[0032]FIG. 14 is an exploded perspective view showing a well-knownslider, a part of which is taken away.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0033] An embodiment of a slider for a slide fastener according to theinvention will be specifically described below with reference to thedrawings.

[0034] The slider for a slide fastener according to the invention isconstituted by three members including a body 2, a pull tab 3 and acover 4 for pull tab attachment as shown in FIGS. 1 to 6, and at leastthe body 2 and the cover 4 for pull tab attachment are formed byinjection molding using a thermoplastic resin such as polybutyleneterephthalate, polyamide, polyacetal or polypropylene, and the pull tab3 is mounted on the formed body 2 in a pivotal support configuration andthe cover 4 is provided thereon and is welded to the upper surface ofthe body 2 so that a slider 1 is fabricated.

[0035] The body 2 of the slider 1 couples an upper plate 6 and a lowerplate 7 through a guide column 8, and flanges 9 for guiding a fastenerelement are provided on both side edges of the upper plate 6 and thelower plate 7. The flange 9 is provided on only one of the upper plate 6and the lower plate 7 depending on the configuration of the fastenerelement in some cases. An attachment column 10 is erected longitudinallyon the upper surface of the upper plate 6, and the stopping mechanism ofthe slider 1 is provided on the attachment column 10 according tocircumstances so that a slider having an automatic or semiautomaticstopper can be finished.

[0036] As shown in FIG. 3, the attachment column 10 erected on the upperplate 6 of the body 2 is separately provided on a forward part of thebody 2 (that is, the shoulder side) and a rear part (that is, the rearside), and the opposed surfaces of the front and rear attachment columns10 are formed on slant face portions 12 respectively and perform anauxiliary duty for guiding a pivot 22 of the pull tab 3 together with abearing portion 20 of the cover 4. A concave fitting grooves 11 capableof fitting the cover 4 for pull tab attachment are provided in theforward part of the attachment column 10 on the shoulder side and baseportions on both sides, and the rear part of the attachment column 10 onthe rear side and base portions on both sides, respectively.

[0037] The fitting groove 11 is concaved to take such a shape as toreach a slightly inner center from both a corner portion 14 in the rearpart of the attachment column 10 on the shoulder side and the cornerportion 14 in the forward part of the attachment column 10 on the rearside, and is formed to precisely hold the bearing portion 20 having agreat thickness which is formed in the central part of the cover 4.Furthermore, a projection 13 is provided in the central part of thefitting groove 11 formed laterally on the front and rear ends of thebody 2 in order to prevent the cover 4 from being shifted to the leftand right of the body 2 when the cover 4 is fitted, and is formed to befitted in a concave portion 23 provided on a front wall 17 and a rearwall 18 in the cover 4.

[0038] As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the cover 4 for covering theattachment column 10 of the body 2 is wholly formed by a bilge-shapedbox, the front wall 17, the rear wall 18 and a side wall 19 are providedon a forward part, a rear part and both sides over the periphery of thecover 4 respectively, and the concave bearing portion 20 capable ofinserting the pivot 22 of the pull tab 3 therethrough is provided on thecenter of the side walls 19 at both sides, and front and rear lower endfaces 21 of the bearing portion 20 are formed to have great thicknessesand to be fitted in the corner portions 14 of the body 2. Moreover, theinverted U-shaped concave portions 23 are provided in the central partsof the lower end faces 21 in the front wall 17 and the rear wall 18 tofit the projections 13 provided on the front and rear ends of the body2, thereby precisely holding the cover 4.

[0039] As shown in FIG. 5, a plurality of welding projections 25 of arectangular parallelepiped 27 for welding the cover 4 to the body 2 isprovided at a predetermined interval in a longitudinal line in a part ofthe surfaces of the lower end faces 21 in the left and right side walls19 of the cover 4, and the cover 4 is fitted in the fitting groove 11provided on the body 2 so that the body 2 and the cover 4 can easily bewelded to each other.

[0040] In the assembly of the slider, the pivot 22 of the pull tab 3 ismounted between the attachment columns 10 provided on the upper surfaceof the body 2, the attachment column 10 is then covered by the cover 4and the lower end face 21 of the cover 4 is thus fitted and held in thefitting groove 11 of the body 2 as shown in FIG. 7, and thereafter, thewelding projection 25 is fused and welded to the bottom portion of thefitting groove 11 by ultrasonic processing. In this case, the weldingprojection 25 is not provided over the whole surface of the lower endface 21 of the cover 4 so that a gap is present around the weldingprojection 25. Consequently, a fused resin is filled in the fittinggroove 11 and is solidified, and does not overflow from the fittinggroove 11 to the surface of the body 2. For this reason, the beauty ofthe slider 1 can be prevented from being spoiled, and furthermore, thefused resin can be prevented from overflowing to the surface of the body2 to be solidified, thereby forming a lump differently from aconventional product.

[0041] For the slider 1 according to an embodiment of the invention, asshown in an exploded view of FIG. 6, the fitting groove 11 to be formedaround the attachment column 10 in the upper plate 6 of the body 2 has adepth of approximately 0.5 mm and a width which is equal to the width ofthe lower end face 21 of the cover 4 and the welding projection 25 to beformed on the lower end face 21 of the cover 4 has a height ofapproximately 0.2 mm and a width which is almost half of the width ofthe lower end face 21, and they are welded by the ultrasonic processing.A dimension is varied depending on the size of the slider 1.

[0042] The shape of the welding projection 25 protrudingly provided at apredetermined interval from the lower end face 21 of the cover 4 may bethe rectangular parallelepiped 27 having a square section shown in FIG.5, a pyramid 26 having a triangular section shown in FIGS. 8(a), 8(b)and 8(c), a hipped member 28 having a triangular section shown in FIGS.9(a), 9(b) and 9(c), a cone 29 having a triangular section shown inFIGS. 10(a), 10(b) and 10(c) or a truncated cone 30 having a squaresection shown in FIGS. 11(a), 11(b) and 11(c). As shown in FIG. 12,moreover, one or two projections 21 having a triangular or squaresection may be provided over almost the whole length of the lower endface 21 of the cover 4. The welding projection 25 may have other shapes.For example, the welding projection 25 may be formed by a prism or acylinder which has a square section.

[0043] The welding projections 25 having various configurations do notneed to be provided on only the lower end face 21 of the cover 4 but maybe provided on a surface in the fitting groove 11 formed on the upperplate 6 of the body 2. For example, as shown in FIG. 13, the weldingprojection 25 is provided at a predetermined interval on the surface inthe fitting grooves 11 formed on both sides of the attachment column 10or one projection having a gap formed on both sides may be provided, andmay be caused to come in contact with the flat lower end face 21 of thecover 4 by pressure and may be thus welded by the ultrasonic processing.

[0044] The slider for a slide fastener according to the invention hasthe structure described above and produces the following effects by sucha structure.

[0045] According to the first aspect of the invention, a slider for aslide fastener has a body of the slider and a cover for pull tabattachment which is provided on an upper surface of the body, wherein afitting groove for accommodating a lower end face of the cover isprovided on the upper surface of the body, a welding projection isprotruded from a part of a surface of the lower end face or a bottomface of the fitting groove, and the body and the cover are weldedintegrally. Consequently, the lower end face of the cover and the bottomface of the fitting groove of the body do not wholly come in contactwith each other but come in contact with each other by the weldingprojection having a gap therearound. Therefore, it is possible to obtaina slider in which excessive fusion can be prevented, a fused materialdoes not overflow from the fitting groove and beauty can be enhanced.Furthermore, there is no solidified lump obtained by overflowing fromthe fitting groove as in a conventional product. Thus, it is possible toproduce an effect that the normal fall-down operation of a pull tab canbe carried out.

[0046] According to the second aspect of the invention, in addition tothe effect of the first aspect of the invention, a plurality of weldingprojections is formed to be protruded at a predetermined interval.Consequently, a fused material flows into the welding projectionsprovided at the predetermined interval and is filled therein. Thus, itis possible to obtain an advantage that the fused material can beeffectively prevented from overflowing from the fitting groove.

[0047] According to the third aspect of the invention, in addition tothe effect of the first aspect of the invention, the welding projectionis formed to be continuously protruded. Consequently, the fused materialflows into a gap portion formed on both sides of the welding projectionand is filled therein. Thus, it is possible to obtain an advantage thatthe fused material can be effectively prevented from overflowing fromthe fitting groove.

[0048] According to the fourth aspect of the invention, in addition tothe effect of the first, second or third aspect of the invention, thewelding projection is provided on the lower end face of a side wall ofthe cover or the bottom face of the fitting groove of the body which isopposed to the lower end face of the side wall of the cover.Consequently, the welding is carried out in a longitudinal direction,that is, a lengthwise direction of the body. Therefore, it is possibleto produce an advantage that an effective welding strength can beobtained and a bad effect of causing the fused material to overflow tothe front and rear faces of the body can be prevented.

[0049] According to the fifth aspect of the invention, in addition tothe effect of the first, second or third aspect of the invention, thewelding projection is formed to take a square cross section.Consequently, the amount of a material for forming the weldingprojection can be increased and the welding strength of the body and thecover can be enhanced. Thus, it is possible to produce an advantage thatthe invention is suitable for the fabrication of a large-sized sliderrequiring a great welding strength.

[0050] According to the sixth aspect of the invention, in addition tothe effect of the first, second or third aspect of the invention, thewelding projection is formed to take a triangular cross section.Consequently, the amount of the material for forming the weldingprojection is reduced and the fused material can be prevented fromoverflowing from the fitting groove. In addition, it is possible toproduce an advantage that the invention is suitable for the fabricationof a small-sized slider which does not require a great welding strength.Thus, the advantage produced by the invention is very remarkable.

What is claimed is:
 1. A slider for a slide fastener, comprising: a bodyof a slider; and a cover for pull tab attachment which is provided on anupper surface of the body, wherein a fitting groove for accommodating alower end face of the cover is provided on the upper surface of thebody, and wherein a welding projection is protruded from a part of oneof a surface of the lower end face and a bottom face of the fittinggroove, and wherein the body and the cover are welded integrally.
 2. Theslider for a slide fastener according to claim 1, wherein a plurality ofwelding projections is formed to be protruded at a predeterminedinterval.
 3. The slider for a slide fastener according to claim 1,wherein the welding projection is formed to be continuously protruded.4. The slider for a slide fastener according to claim 1, wherein thewelding projection is provided on one of the lower end face of a sidewall of the cover and the bottom face of the fitting groove of the bodywhich is opposed to the lower end face of the side wall of the cover. 5.The slider for a slide fastener according to claim 1, wherein thewelding projection is formed to take a square cross section.
 6. Theslider for a slide fastener according to claim 1, wherein the weldingprojection is formed to take a triangular cross section.
 7. The sliderfor a slide fastener according to claim 1, further comprising a pull tabmounted on the formed body in a pivotal support configuration.
 8. Theslider for a slide fastener according to claim 1, wherein the weldingprojection is fused in order to integrally weld the body and the cover.